Import and manipulate PDF files in AutoCAD

[autocad.wishlist1734]

Summary: The ability to import and manipulate PDF files in AutoCAD

Description: I would like AutoCAD to be able to import PDF files into DWG files out-of-the-box.

How Used: PDFs are the industry standard for electronic publishing, the digital equivalent of paper plots.Clients often will only transmit files in PDF format and ask that the PDF files be manipulated in AutoCAD.

Feature Affinity: Other

Submitted By: Wesley Chin on June 23, 2006

[kristreagus]

this would be a very useful feature, but given this has been a nearly ubiquitous feature of many other design programs for many years, along with a proliferation of utilities, AutoCADs programmers are clearly fearful of stepping on Adobe InDesign's toes.

Autodesk has thoughtfully given us those superior, highly accurate export formats like DXB and WMF to work with -- sadly no-one actually uses them. it probably won't happen in AutoCAD's lifetime, but we can only hope.

[rkmcswain]

We use ToolPac to import PDF files into AutoCAD, generally for certain files that are supplied to us in PDF format only (details, standard sheets, etc).

As a general rule, PDF's are still no better than a PLT file. Even if you do import them, you are at the mercy of the accuracy at which the PDF was generated - not a good idea for design drawings.

Interesting that you have clients that will "only transmit files in PDF format", but then "ask that the PDF files be manipulated in AutoCAD" -- why wouldn't these clients just send the DWG files. Generally, PDF files are transmitted when the author does not want the drawing edited.

[robert.1.hall72202]

What do you mean by manipulate?

Make changes to the geometry?

I think that defeats the purpose of a PDF file.

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